Match pack



Feb. 23, 1943. WARNER 2,311,794

- MATCH PACK I Filed April 20, 1942 GENERAL C0.

ADVIRTISING ADVERTISING Q W 23 22 ,lz DAVID H.WARNER No.7. 27 i m 3%Strum Patented Feb. 23, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MATCH PACKDavid H. Warner, Canton, Ohio Application April 20, 1942, Serial No.439,786

1 Claim.

My invention relates to match packs, and has for its object to provide amatch pack wherein the heads of the matches will normally be heldcovered by the pack strip together with means for opening a side of thepack to get at the matches and move them laterally therefrom, and yetwherein when desired the pack strip can be fully opened up for exposingthe contents and exposing advertising printed on the inside of the packstrip, and which match pack can be manufactured by folding and staplingmachinery now in use.

It is well known that certain types of matches are formed of slittedcardboard with a chemical composition forming the head and with a stripof chemical material on the cardboard such that when the head isfrictionally moved across the strip igniting of the matches will takeplace. Ordinarily one face of the match pack is free to be withdrawn,leaving the heads of the matches exposed. A grave condition exists inrespect to this practice, since chemical sparks may fly from the head ofthe match as it is ignited simultaneously igniting the heads of allother matches and thus resulting in severe burns.

It is :a particular object of my invention to provide a match pack ofthe above type wherein normally the heads of matches will be covered bythe pack strip itself together with means for getting at the shanks ofthe matches in the pack for removing them laterally from the pack and atthe same time having one flap of the pack strip free for removal fromthe base of the pack so that it may be opened out fully.

In this connection it is an important object of my invention to providea match pack wherein the advantages of having the heads of the matchescovered by the folded-over portion of the pack strip are obtained, andyet which can be manufactured by the same stapling and folding machinerywhich has heretofore been used to manufacture match packs with one endof the pack strip entirely unstapled and free.

It is also an object of my invention to form the pack strip in a singlepiece with advertising printed on the inside of it and to staple afolded portion of one end of the pack strip to the match strips,ordinarily held in two rows, and to so form the other end of the packstrip that it may be inserted in the folded part of the end securing thematches and be locked in position there while not being actuallystapled.

The full objects and advantages of my invention will appear inconnection with the detailed description hereinafter given in thespecification,

and the novel features by which the aforesaid advantageous results areobtained will be particularly pointed out in the claim. a

In the drawing, illustrating an application of my invention in one ofits forms Fig. 1 is a perspective front view of my match pack in itsfinal position.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front perspective view similar to Fig. 1 with the front flapof the match pack pulled out.

Fig. 4 is a flat plan view of the finished pack strip with the matchesof the pack in position and the removable flap held in a fully extendedplane.

Fig. 5 is a similar view after all the matches have been used up.

Fig. 6 isa. flat plan view of the blank after advertising has been putthereon and otherwise punched and completed before it is secured uponthe match strips.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view on an enlarged scale taken on line 1-1 ofFig. 2.

Fig. 8 illustrates the manner in which the matches are removed when thetop flap has been locked in closing position.

As illustrated, a pack strip l I) is first stamped, printed and scored,as indicated in Fig. 6. The scoring at I l indicates the point where thestrip will be bent over to overlie the bases [2, Fig. '7, of the matchstrips. The scoring I 3 indicates where the match pack will be bent atthe top, as indicated at the point It.

When the parts have been brought together, as indicated in Fig. 2, undernormal conditions there will be a clamping fold l5 overlying the baseportions I6 and ll of two strips of matches and held together by meansof a staple l8.

In my copending application Serial Number 296,577 I proposed to stapleboth ends of the pack strip together over the match strip, thuspermanently enclosing the heads of the match strips and by the meansdisclosed in the said application to break away portions of the first ofthe match strip to get at the matches below. Difficulties have beenencountered in so forming the match pack, particularly in requiringmachinery different from that now in use for folding and stapling matchpacks, and I have discovered that by cut ting out a flared opening atthe end of the top flap and providing notches to engage against theshanks of the staples it is possible to hold the top flap substantiallyfixed over the matches without its being stapled, so that thesedifllculties have been avoided, and at the same time to make possiblethe removal of the top flap any time that it is deemed desirable. Thisenables the top flap to support certain advertising which may begradually revealed as the matches are removed and which thereby arousescuriosity so that the user in order to satisfy that curiosity maywithdraw the front flap entirely and thereby get to read the entireadvertising message, under conditions favorable for the advertiser.

The front flap I9 is provided with a series of slits 20 which extendthrough the cardboard of the front flap l9 but have their lower portionsspaced a considerable distance from the end of the strip, as indicatedat 2| in Figs. 3 and 6. This unslitted portion of the lower edge is cutaway with sloping side edges 22 and 23, as indicated in Figs. 3, 4 and6, and the edges 22 and 23 terminate in small notches 24 and 25, whichare of a size adapted to fit around the shanks 26 and 21, Fig. 7, of thestaple l8.

From the above it will be apparent that the pack strips may be printed,punched and scored, as indicated in .Fig. 6, and run through the usualmachine for turning the flap l5 over the bottom ends of the match strips5 and I1 and affixing the staple 18. This is all done by the identicalmachinery which has been employed in putting together match packs.However, with my invention it is only necessary to push the free end ofthe pack strip under the turned-up end IS, with the sloping walls 22 and23 of the opening between them on each side of the staple I8, until thenotches 24 and 25 come in position over the staple shanks 26 and 21 andthe match pack will be complete as shown in Fig. 1 and will have all theadvantages which would have come from stapling the free end under theflap l5. This is a very substantial advantage, as above pointed out,

since it does not require a new type of machinery, as would otherwise bethe case. It is also of advantage because it will enable users of thepack who become interested in the advertisement on the inside of thepack to pull out the free end and satisfy their curiosity in reading theadvertisement, which of course is more apt to be effective for theadvertiser.

The matches are removed by first inserting the thumb-nail in the slits2B and pulling out the pieces 30 on the front of the match strip andtaking the matches out one at a time successively under each pieceremoved. This will, of course, bring to light the advertising on theinside and arouse the curiosity of the user so that he may finallydecide to pull the flap out to read the entire advertisement, this beinga more efiective I form of advertising than where the advertisement ison the outside where all of it can be seen at all times.

I claim: i

A match pack comprising an extended pack strip folded at one end andgripping a match strip between the folded parts of the pack strip, astaple passing through the folded portions of the pack strip and thematch strip to permanently hold them together, a portion cut out of thefree end of the pack strip with sloping edges that narrow the cut-outportion toward its inner end to less than the distance between thespaced outer limits of the staple shanks, and notches at the inner endsof said edges beyond the portions nearest together, whereby when the endof the pack strip-is inserted beneath the folded portion thereof saidcut-out portion will straddle the shanks of the staple and the notcheswill be brought about said shanks to lock the free end of the pack stripfolded over the heads of the matches.

- DAVID H. WARNER.

